Deir Alla - Jordan

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About Deir Alla

Deir Alla, Jordan, is the site of an ancient Near Eastern town in Balqa Governorate, Jordan, thought to be the biblical Pethor. The name Deir Alla is an ancient Aramaic one. Dayr means temple, while Ola means high point, or hill. When combined, Deir Alla signifies the high place – physically and metaphysically.

From the official website of Deir Alla:

The municipality is a private, financially independent institution that updates, abolishes, and delineates the boundaries of its region, and follows up on plans and programs to achieve sustainable development with the participation of local communities. It practices everything that is of a local developmental character and manages all local services, facilities, and projects entrusted to it by itself or through partnership with the private sector or local community institutions.

Just as Jordan is constantly and sustainably developed by the efforts of the Hashemite leaders (of the most ancient origins who belong to the origin of the prophethood) Deir Alla’s institutions are developing in a continuous and sustainable manner. Its citizens implement the visions and ideas of the Hashemite leaders who lead this incredible country.


  • Founding: 1967 C.E.

  • Population: 73,477 (2015)

  • Ethnic groups: Arabs, with a significant minority of Palestinian Refugees

  • Religions: Islam

  • Mayor: Mahmoud Abdul-Wali Al-Nsour

  • Province: Balqa

  • Temperature averages: 31C/89F high, 10C/50F low

  • Elevation: -314m (below sea level)

  • Currency: Jordanian Dinar

  • Airport: Queen Alia International (AMM)

Two dogs
Two dogs

Animals & Wildlife

Deir Alla lies at the base of the Jordan River Valley, 314 meters below sea level. The animals and plants in Deir Alla are typical of this extreme region, with endemic species such as the Jordan Bream. The ongoing water crisis there threatens much of the wildlife, and Deir Alla’s ongoing partnership via EcoPeace has been a highlight of the sister cities efforts to combat this.

Two dogs

Since 2015

Deir Alla and Gainesville have been linked since 2015, when Gainesville Mayor Edward Braddy and Deir Alla Mayor Khalifeh Ad-Dayyat signed the document below at a water conference in Chicago.

Exchanges and Delegations

Gainesville Mayor Ed Braddy signed a sister city agreement with Deir Alla in 2015, and met with Deir Alla Mayor Khalifeh Ad-Dayyat at a conference in Chicago about sharing the water of the Jordan River. In 2017, Gainesville Mayor Lauren Poe led a delegation to Deir Alla.

The two cities collaborate through the Jordan Valley Sister Cities Agreement with Sister Cities International, The Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Cities Initiative and EcoPeace Middle East.

Stories

“This is another example of subnational officials and organizations taking the lead in addressing international issues affect their communities. Problems related to access to water and water management are felt acutely at the local level, but can only be solved through international cooperation. Despite the fact that national governments control borders, these communities have shown that progress on these problems can be made through citizen diplomacy and local cooperation.”

Adam Kaplan, Vice President of Sister Cities International (2015)


“The agreement will enable mayors in a war torn region to adapt long-standing models of water sharing from the abundant Great Lakes region,”

Rachel Havrelock, associate professor of English at the University of Illinois at Chicago, founder of Freshwater Lab